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International Women’s Day is about raising women up, celebrating their accomplishments and contributions, and recognizing that there is still  work to be done.

This year, the campaign theme for International Women’s Day is #PressForProgress. With movements such as #MeToo and #TimesUp, activism and advocacy for gender parity and equality has never been more at the forefront of a global conversation. We must take this momentum and use #PressForProgress as a strong call to motivate and unite friends, colleagues and whole communities to think, act and be gender inclusive.

Women’s Advocacy in St. Catharines 

In rising up to this call, we dedicated our International Women’s Day podcast to contextualizing this movement locally and reflecting on the history of women’s advocacy and activism in St. Catharines. Looking into our past, we can trace a powerful history of women’s organizations advocating for progress and creating real change in our community.

One of those incredibly important organizations is the YWCA, whose roots in St. Catharines extend back to 1928.

The YWCA Niagara Region, located in downtown St. Catharines, provides shelter, food, and assistance to women and families in poverty. The YW is strongly committed to social change and works endlessly through all sorts of programs and events to create a community that supports women in need and to provide support through each step towards financial stability and independent living.

This year, 2018, also marks the 90th anniversary of the YWCA here in St. Catharines. The YW has an incredible legacy of working towards real change in the lives of women across Niagara. The YW is celebrating this milestone with a special Open House at the St. Catharines Museum on Saturday, April 28th!

We share a conversation with current president of the YWCA Niagara Region’s Board of Directors, Jennifer Bonato in the podcast.

This is the year to #PressforProgress! So step up, reach out, and take action.

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Special thanks to our guest, Jennifer Bonato for an inspiring conversation!

Footnotes

1 – You can listen to our 2017 International Women’s Day podcast here. We worked with a group of female community leaders to record a reading of local activist and suffragist Lillian Phelp’s 1890 essay, “Women as Wage Earners.” Though written almost 120 years ago, its message is just as relevant today.